Omeprazole has ruined my life
Posted , 89 users are following.
I really regret taking prilosec, i fell ill with a virus last december that caused gastroenteritis (severe acid reflux and diarrhea).. i was told to take omeprazole for 14 day treatment.. at the time i did not experience any side effects so after the 14 day treatment was over, about a week later i experienced acid rebound that sent me to the ER. The er dr said i needed to up the dose to 40 mg 2x/day... and this is when i became more ill.. i had severe diarrhea for 9 days, blurry vision, brain fog, muscle twitching, cramping, body jolts before going to sleep, . i couldnt digest my food.. lost 10 lbs.. but i did not know what was happening to me.. i was so sick i had to have a colonoscopy and egd.. i was told i had unspecified colitis.. i stupidly cont this drug bc thats what the drs told me to do.. and as im trying to heal my gut from whatever virus i had i started to develop new symptoms.. extreme brain fog, memory loss, fatigue, anxiety, muscle twitching, buzzing in certain parts of my body.. frequent urination in am. I feel as if i have nerve damage of some kind because of this ppi.. after 4 1/2 months of this posion i have since stopped this med and it has been 11 days but my twitching is still there.. i know this drug caused these other problems bc as i weaned from 40 mg to 20mg to then every other day i began experiencing body jolts and more nerve problems, numbness in certain parts, etc. has this happened to anyone else and did anyone make a full recovery?? I need some help please..Before I took this med I was a healthy 32 year old. Now 33 and still recovering. Does anyone know if this is permanent?
1 like, 376 replies
simonron olivia53472
Posted
I now have managed to make 30mg capsule last about a week. But, I need ant acid tablets from time to time. My body jolts are about the same - frightening and massive, but they do stop when I stand up - most of the time. Some times one leg just bends out under me when I'm standing still. This has no happened as I climb stairs yet, I rather hope it won't.
My wife and I have every reason to be anxious about everything, we have been out of solid work for years, have a mentally ill adult son and have been forced to return ( this we wanted ) to return to the UK from Sydney. But - I don't feel anxious, in fact I've taken up acting.
Acid reflex, random limb movements, burping and being over 60 are all a problem, but at least I'm taking less Lansoprazole.
Good luck everyone.
michael911 simonron
Posted
please look into PPI and magnesium deficiency. sounds like this could be your issue. once you get off the PPI and supplement with mag you should see improvement in muscle motility. i am not a doctor just speaking from experience. please do your own research before taking anything!
susan40017 olivia53472
Posted
I've never heard of any of these side effects from PPIs. Is there any actual rear h evidence to support this? Ive been on Lansoprazole for 10 years as i ave a mild hiatus hernia. Ive never had any side effects whatsoever but, about 4 years ago,my GP halved my dose from 30mgs to 15mgs because he said there was some evidence that long term use on the higher dose could cause some loss of bone density. As far as I know, Ive never heard of PPIs causing anxiety problems. Did you have anxiety before, and perhaps this was also the cause of your stomach problems?
susan40017
Posted
research evidence.......
simonron susan40017
Posted
I have not heard of axiety as a Lansoprazole side effect either outside of this thread. I too have been on it for at least a decade and had the same bone advice. I get the 30mg capsules in Australia because we had to pay for them and it was less expensive to split them up. I do it no because it's wasteful - and it gives me the chance to drop to 5 or 7mgish - but with some reflex.
susan40017 simonron
Posted
whenever you have reflux, you're damaging your oesophagus with gastric acid so you should be taking the dose that controls it. you should probably stick with 15mgs daily. I dont believe theres any negative side effects at that dose. If you want to reduce your dose you should take 15mgs 4 or 5 times a week and see how you go.
simonron susan40017
Posted
I do think I need to take more than the 7 or so I'm on now. I'm worried about internal bleed as well - such fun.
I've got to take my anti-body jolt pills now. They actually made my minor twitching become jolting when I tried to come off them. That was Sifrol, that I think is not absorbed, or is absorbed differently when taking Lansoprazole - despite claims this is impossible. My blood test results show I am pre-diabetic , which I think I have been for years, low Vit D and Feratin but b12 is OK oddly. When all these indicators are taken in to account over the whole body - by the automated personal systems I mentioned earlier, I think the records we are making now shall become an invaluable resource.
michael911 olivia53472
Posted
Hello,
I am currently going through this for the second time. My story is a bit long but i have all of the symptoms you mentioned above. what i discovered is that prilosec can cause magnesium deficiency. Some people never become deficient, some it takes a long time, and others it happens very rapidly. I am one of those.
I had severe esophageal spasms and i could not swallow. Once i took Chelated Magnesium my muscles relaxed, my anxiety calmed, and i could sleep again. I had an EGD, doctor messed something up with the biopsy and caused me to bleed. I had to go back on PPI to protect the bleed. now i am restarting the process all over. currently i am using zantac, rolaids (which have magnesium in them, gaviscon advance and i take 500mg chelated magnesium a day.
kelsey79451 olivia53472
Edited
Wow I don't even know where to start except by saying this forum has been a great comfort to me in knowing I'm not alone.
I started taking Prilosec for what I suspected to be GERD. The moment I started taking it I started having heightened anxiety ( I already had GAD but consider myself to be functional) constant panic, foggy brain ect. I went to my GP for a check up and told him about the anxiety and he kind of shrugged it off and told me to do yoga and deep breathing excersizes. He was more interested in my stomach troubles and ended up prescribing me 20mg x2 a day of Prescription strength Pepcid. At this point I was still able to go about my routine during the day just was so worried as to why I was all the sudden feeling so different. Well after starting the Pepcid things went downhill fast. I became depressed, didn't feel like myself, was crying almost every day, constant state of fight or flight, depersonalized and basically just felt like a zombie. I did some research online and found that PPI's can cause these symptoms so I headed back to my doctor and told him about it. He basically blew me off like most doctors do when it isn't something they normally hear about and tried prescribing me and SSRI. That morning I had quit taking the Pepcid and that night was when I started the SSRI and had a HORRIBLE reaction which I have now found out is partly from the withdrawl of the PPI. I was in such a bad place that I was seriously considering checking myself into a psychiatric hospital. It's now been four days of being off the meds and I've developed insomnia from the excessive amount of acid now in my stomach and these jolts that will wake me up just when I am trying to fall asleep. I have although been feeling a little better mentally. The brain fog seems to be lifting a little each and every day and I don't find myself in as much of a panic as before. I just hope this passes soon and I wish I would've never put this poision in my body to begin with.
michael911 kelsey79451
Posted
Hi Kelsey,
I am sorry to hear that you are suffering as well. Your side effects sound quite similar to what I am experiencing as well. How long did you remain on the pepcid?I believe this is an H2 btw but still causes very similar reactions in some folks. Have you tried any natural remedies at all to soothe the stomach and acid reflux?
I wish you the best and you are not alone!
michael911 kelsey79451
Posted
BTW Kelsey,
My story is so similar to yours because i also suffer from GAD as well but I've learned to live with it. When I took omeprazole my GAD and health anxiety went through the roof, it became problem after problem and my doc put me on lexapro as well. after about 2 months on the omeprazole combined with the lexapro i started having a lot of mental side effects like momentary lapses in balance, a lot of fatigue, and other things that i mostly attributed to the Lexapro. i stopped the lexapro and noticed that some side effects went away but when other things remained i knew there could only be one possibility. The omeprazole was causing me severe, and i mean severe muscle and joint pain. im only 27! my mind was going to the worst places, thinking i have cancer, etc. i'll be honest. im no where near close to being better. im about the same amount of days out as you. its been a little less than a week and i am still nauseous, havent had a normal BM, still have some brain fog, but the worst is still the shoulder chest and back pain. i will say that since i have stopped the omeprazole and began dosing with some vitamins like magnesium and b12 it is letting up a bit. however it is always the worst first thing in the morning. i am hoping someone will post that has been through similar experience because i feek twice my age right now.
kelsey79451 michael911
Posted
Well before I was taking the prilosec I was on Nexium for 14 days then on the prilosec for about two weeks and then the Pepcid for about two weeks. If you go to askapatient.com you can look up reviews on certain medicines. It seemed like across the board with both PPI's and H2 blockers these side effects are possible. I have tried ACV which I did last night but not only did I get jolted awake with extreme acid build up but my whole upper body felt like it was on fire. I have also been getting the muscle pain and spasms but they seem to be more prevelant at night time as long with most of my other symptoms. I also didn't have a BM for about a week but finally said screw it and drank some coffee (even though I knew that would upset my stomach and also cause anxiety) but I was desperate and that helped move things along. I'm also still nauseous when I was on the meds as soon as I would put food in my mouth I would feel like vomiting. Now I can tolerate really bland food but don't have much of an appetite. I will try supplementing those vitamins as well. I have a feeling that before all of this I was already deficient in magnesium and PPI's and H2 blockers can depleat your magnesium really quickly. Which can cause most of these symptoms we are experiencing. Four days out and I have a lot less brain fog so I definetely know that this medicine was the culprit. I still don't feel myself but I feel like we just need to stay positive and let the posion leave our bodies.
moncheri kelsey79451
Posted
Hello Kelsey, I'm sorry you have to go through with this and we've all been in the same spot. This medication is destructive and really does a lot on the mind. I'm on week 6-7 now since i stopped Prilosec and I've gotten significantly better, but it took me a while to get here. It wasn't easy but I had to really put a lot of my life on hold so I could recover. The best piece of advice is to go to a therapist and go through CBT. It's what helped me get better and its by far the most successful. Learning to manage this what I call new form of PTSD, requires a lot of mental fortitude and learning to handle the anxiety.
benny21592 kelsey79451
Posted
another victim of the evil omeprazole... it has been 8 months since i stopped it after being on it for 9 weeks and i am still the same.. in constant panic and fight or flight... constant crying, urge to hurry things up, inner restlessness, concentrating on anything is a torture, plus i have extremely blurry vision.. immediately after ingesting this poison, i had out of body feelings and thoughts of death.. i still want to be admitted to a psych ward but my parents dont want that.. i am now on antipsychotic and benzos to get some sleep or i ll be up all night... during the day i cant do anything except lie in my bed curled up in fear and in tears.. i read that omeprazole messes up the vagus nerve which sends signals from gut to the brain... all my restlessness seems to stem from my gut and this makes sense.. you are lucky your brain fog and panic are going away .. i would consider myself very lucky if i could see even slight improvement!
benny21592 kelsey79451
Posted
i also believe i have gotten multiple anxiety disorders due to ppi... i have symptoms of GAD, panic, ptsd, health anxiety, adhd and even ocd... for a long time i kept worrying if i had gotten bipolar too... i really dont know when my trial will end or if it is permanent
jhleerph michael911
Edited
michael911,
My apologies if I have already posted in a previous reply but I can relate on many of your symptoms. Especially the perceived muscle and joint pain. I experience them in my back, chest, ribs, shoulders and they seem to migrate from one area to another. The frustrating part is that I have days that I feel relatively ok and it gives me hope improvement will continue. Then I have days where I just feel like a rigid board and really have to muster all my energy to get moving. I know it's hard to get motivated to move but you gotta do it. I just think that my muscles have become so dysfunctional that you have to re-educate them. This is just a theory but I have been working with my physical therapist since October. He has helped me identify restricted/limited/compensated movement and helped me to re-educate the muscles that need to be reset or woken up. It hasn't been easy. Frustrating when you go 2 steps forward and then a step backwards (sometimes 2). I hate doing the exercises but they have gotten me to the point that I was able to jog a couple of miles on back to back days. I was runner in my recent life and I am trying my hardest to get back to it. Baby steps but I will take it. I was also in a dark hole when it came to OMG what if this is cancer, MS, etc. That brings on anxiety and exacerbates the anxiety you are already experiencing. To all that read this, keep fighting and question your doctors. If you don't like what they say, question some more or find another doctor. My doctor tried to put me on Lyrica. I asked why b/c that would only address symptoms and the root cause. Crickets! I guess this is just a commentary on the current health system. I know most of you already know this but please don't assume your doctor knows best.
benny21592 jhleerph
Posted
i guess every one of us has been effected in different ways, but all of us are suffering real bad due to this drug.. for me, the depersonalization that comes with anxiety is the worst.. i feel disconnected from the real world and that is very painful.... i really hope one day we all can share our recovery story here on this same forum..., soon! and when we do recover, we do something to raise awareness so others can be spared this torture!
judith47577 benny21592
Posted
how old are you benny
benny21592 judith47577
Posted
i am 34, female... i had had lots of tests and brain scan.. my MRI showed white matter and nerve damage. actually brain damage... my neuro doctor suspects autoimmune encephalopathy ... i had thyroid autoimmune previously.. unfortunately during triple therapy with antibiotics and omeprazole, some kind of blood brain barrier abnormaity occurred and it gave me brain damage... anxiety is only one aspect of my suffering., i have a myriad of neuropsychiatric symptoms.. the doctor is putting me on steroids next week.. fingers crossed for recovery.. i dont know if the brain damage can be reversed or not, or stopped even..
judith47577 benny21592
Posted
gosh you are too young for all this!! so sorry
benny21592 judith47577
Posted
yeah.. but i have been feeling like a 110 year old since a year due to these things.. i want my brain back 😦
judith47577 benny21592
Posted
my worse symptom is sometimes i feel like there is something heavy like a brick in my head and i cant think ...and i feel poisoned
jay74096 judith47577
Posted
i know this is an old thread but did yall ever recover from this? i just came off it and have that heavy head feeling and muscle twitching.